Container filling machine



Sept. 21, 1965 R. w. VERGOBBI CONTAINER FILLING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 1'7, 1962 INVENTOR' Robe r? W. Vergobbi BYGJMQEMM Sep 2 96 R..w. VERGOBBI CONTAINER FILLING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 17, 1962 INVENTOR Robert W. Vergobbi BY WMQLMJA Sept. 21, 1965 R. w. VERGOBBI CONTAINER FILLING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Dec. 17, 1962 506 500 INVENTOR Robert W. Verqobbi WM C mel- E Sept. 21, 1965 R. w. VERGOBBI CONTAINER FILLING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. 17, 1962 INVENTOR.

Robert W. Vergobbi Se t. 21, 1965 R. w. VERGOBBI 3,207,189

CONTAINER FILLING MACHINE Filed Dec. 17, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 50s 50o W 98 506 I22 l6\ I00 80 8| W as 94 8 4 l 04 I l o [FT] INVENTOR. if '4 Robert W. Vergobbi BY |L lJ 4.. ("Lem United States Patent 3,207,189 CONTAINER FILLING MACHINE Robert W. Vergobbi, Braintree, Mass., assignor to Pneumatic Scale Corporation, Limited, Quincy, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Dec. 17, 1962, Ser. No. 245,017 8 Claims. (Cl. 14'1-90) This invention relates to a container filling machine of the gravity or pressure feed type and comprises an improvement in the container filling machine illustrated and described in a copending application by Robert W. Vcrgobbi, Max Knobel and William H, Trusselle, Serial No. 144,623, filed October 12, 1961. The machine disclosed in the prior application operates on a novel principle wherein air at low pressure is conducted through a nozzle into the container being filled during the bottle filling operation, and when the liquid level reaches a height in the bottle to block off escape of low pressure air through the end of the nozzle, a back pressure is built up to actuate pneumatically operated control means to effect closing of the liquid dispensing valve to discontinue the flow of liquid into the container.

In practice it was found that some liquids being run had a tendency to adhere to the outlet end of the low pressure air nozzle and to accumulate thereon to an extent such as to block off the outlet or to partially block off the outlet of the low pressure air nozzle, and as a result the pneumatically operated control means was rendered inoperative.

Accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide novel and improved means in a container filling machine for periodically clearing the low pressure air nozzle of any accumulated material therein at the end of each filling operation in a simple and expedient manner whereby to maintain the control means in eflicient operating condition at all times.

With this general object in view and such others as may hereinafter appear, the invention consists in the container filling machine and in the various structures, arrangements and combinations of parts hereinafter described and particularly defined in the claims at the end of this specification.

In the drawings illustrating the preferred embodiment of the invention:

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross section of a container filling machine embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the same;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view of pneumatic control means to be referred to;

FIG. 4 is a detail view in front elevation showing successive filling heads; and

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of a filling head.

Referring now to the drawings, only those portions of the container filling machine which are necessary to an understanding of the present invention have been herein illustrated and described, reference being made to the copending application, Serial No. 144,623, above referred to for a more complete description thereof. In general the present invention is embodied in a rotary bottle filling machine wherein a plurality of elevating platforms 12 are mounted to move in a circular path and to which successive bottles 14 to be filled are transferred by a transfer spider 13 from an intake conveyor 15. During continuous rotation in a circular path the platforms 12 are arranged to be elevated to present the bottles in operative relation to their respective filling heads indicated generally at 16, the filling nozzles 18 thereof extending into the mouths of the bottles as shown. Upon completion of the filling operation the elevating platforms 12 are again lowered to a transfer level, and the filled bottles "ice are transferred by a discharge spider 19 onto a discharge conveyor 21 to be delivered from the machine.

The filling head units 16 are carried by and rotatable with the rotary supporting disk 50, and each filling head unit has associated therewith a pneumatic control unit indicated generally at 52 supported above its filling head. Each control unit 52 is enclosed in a housing 54, and the housings are supported upon an annular plate 56 carried by vertical tie rods 58 extended from the rotary supporting disk 50 as shown. Each control unit 52 includes a pneumatically operated cylinder 60 having a piston 62 arranged to cooperate with its filling head unit 16 to control the flow of liquid into the bottle.

The filling head units 16 are arranged in circumferentially spaced relation and in vertical alignment with their respective elevating platforms 12 and the bottles 14 carried thereby, and each filling head unit 16 comprises a hollow cylindrical nozzle block providing a chamber 82 having an inlet 84. A nipple 86 connects the chamber inlet with a liquid supply conduit 88 having an O-ring seal connection 89, and each hollow nozzle block 80 is supported by an individual bracket 90 which is secured to the rotary supporting disk 50. The lower end of the nozzle block 80 is provided with a hollow nozzle carrying portion 92 threadedly secured thereto and sealed by an O-ring 94, the hollow portion 92 providing a chamber 96 in communication with the chamber 82. The lower end of the portion 92 is tapered downwardly, as shown, and the nozzle 18, which may be elongated and tubular, is fitted into a bore in the lower end of the portion 92. The upper end of the nozzle block 80 is provided with an adapter 98 threadedly secured thereto and sealed by an O-ring 100. The adapter 98 forms a bearing for the stem 102 of a vertically movable liquid control valve 104. The valve 104 comprises an enlarged diameter portion 106 of the stem and is provided with an O-ring 108 engaged in a peripheral groove formed in the enlarged portion. The valve 104 is freely movable in the chamber 96 and in operation, when the valve is moved upwardly the enlarged diameter portion 106 and the O-ring 108 enter into sealing engagement with the walls of the chamber 82 to cut off the flow of liquid into the nozzle as shown in FIG. 5. The enlarged diameter portion 106 is also provided with a shoulder 110 which engages with a lower surface of the nozzle block 80 when the valve is closed to limit the upward movement of the same. A relatively heavy coil spring 112 interposed between the upper surface of the nozzle block 80 and a collar 114 carried by the upper portion of the stem 102 is arranged to urge the valve 104 upwardly into its closed position. The collar 114 is retained on the stem 102 by a snap ring 116.

The lower end of the valve 104 is tapered downwardly and is provided with a relatively small diameter tubular extension or air nozzle 118 carried by an adapter 120 threadedly secured and sealed to the lower end of the valve 104. The upper end of the air nozzle 118 communicates with a central passageway 122 formed in the valve stem 102, and the upper end of the passageway 122 is connected through a side wall opening to a low pressure air line by .a nipple 126 as shown. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the low pressure air line includes a flexible pipe 504 connected to one leg 507 of a pipe T 500 and a pipe 124 connected between the leg 505 of the T to a second pipe T 125 having communication with the pneumatic control unit 52. The T 125 is connected by a low pressure air supply pipe 127 as shown. The lower end of the low pressure air nozzle 118 is open to the atmosphere providing an outlet 129. As illustrated, the small diameter air nozzle 118 extends into the liquid nozzle 18 providing an annular space therebetween and has secured to its lower end an upstanding tubular portion 128 closed at its lower end except for the outlet 129 and which comprises a liquid nozzle valve of a diameter such as to be telescopically fitted into the lower end of the liquid nozzle 18. The tubular portion 128 is pro vided with a plurality of liquid escape openings 130 in the wall thereof. In operation when'the control valve 104 is moved downwardly to its open position the tubular portion 128 is telescopically extended from the lower end of the nozzle 18 to expose the openings and permit the liquid to flow into the container. Conversely, when the valve 104 is moved upwardly to its closed position the tubular portion 128 will be drawn upwardly within the nozzle 18 to close the liquid escape openings 130 and thus terminate the flow into the container. It will be observed that there is no communication in the filling head between the liquid nozzle 18 and the outlet 129 of the low pressure air nozzle 118. In operation any liquid remaining in the filling head and nozzle 18 between the valve 104 and the valve 128 is suspended therein until the next filling cycle. It will also be observed that the action of the valve 104 in cutting off the flow of liquid is such as to create a suction in the nozzle 18 when the O-ring sealing member 108 is drawn upwardly into engagement With the Walls of the chamber 82 to assist in retaining the liquid in the nozzle in suspension.

In accordance with the present invention the low pressure air line includes the pipe T 500 which is also connected by the leg 503 to a high pressure air pipe 502 through which a surge of high pressure air is directed into the low pressure air nozzle 118, after completion of the filling operation, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

Referring now to FIG. 3, in general the pneumatically operated control unit 52 includes a trip valve 172 arranged to be momentarily actuated to operate the control means when a bottle is in position to be filled; a shuttle type valve 174 arranged to be shifted upon operation of the trip valve 172 to permit the flow of high pressure air to cylinder 60 to effect opening of the liquid control valve 104 and initiation of the filling operation; a high pressure air line indicated generally at 176 connected to the shuttle valve 174; and a diaphragm valve 178 arranged to be actuated by the back preessure in the low pressure air line 124 when the liquid in the bottle reaches a height such as to block the outlet 129 of the low pressure air line whereby to effect shifting of the shuttle valve 174 to discontinue the flow of liquid into the bottle.

Since the structure and operation of the pneumatically operated control unit 52 has been clearly illustrated and described in the copending application, Serial No. 144,623, it is believed sufiicient to state that in operation, when a bottle is elevated into operative relation to its filling head, engagement of the roller 250 of the trip valve 172 with a cam piece 252 is arranged to initiate the filling operation by permitting a surge of high pressure air to pass to a cylinder 246 to elfect bleeding of air through valve 238 from the right hand side of the shuttle valve 174 to the atmosphere which in turn effects shifting of the valve 174 to direct air to the cylinder 60 to effect opening of the liquid control valve 104. During movement of the filling heads 18 and their control units 52 in a circular path, the valves 172 of successive control units 52 are successively tripped, as described, to initiate the filling operation. During the filling operation, air at low pressure, in the order of two inches water pressure, is continuously being discharged through the outlet 129 of the low pressure air nozzle 118 into the bottle and through the open mouth of the bottle around the filling nozzle 18 to the atmosphere together with any air displaced by the liquid entering the bottle. Subsequently, when the liquid in the bottle reaches the end of the air nozzle 118 to block the escape of air therefrom, the back pressure built up in the low pressure line will actuate the diaphragm valve 178 to cause a surge of high pressure air to open a bleed valve 280 to effect bleeding of high pressure air from the opposite side of the shuttle valve 174, which in turn will shift the same to a position to permit the cylinder 60 to be evacuated and the liquid control valve 104 to be spring returned to its closed position to discontinue the filling operation.

In operation, after the bottle has been filled and the liquid control valve 104 has been automatically closed in response to the height of the liquid in the bottle, the elevator platform 12 is lowered away from the filling nozzle. In the event of a failure of a bottle to receive sufficient liquid to reach the low pressure air outlet 129 during its continuous movement in a circular path or in the event of failure of the low pressure air supply so that there will be no pressure build-up to effect automatic closing of the liquid control valve 104, provision is made for assuring operation of the control means to effect closing of the valve 104 at a point in the cycle of movement of the bottle where it would normally be closed so as to prevent spilling of the liquid from the filling head. For this purpose the pipe 284 leading from the left hand bleed valve 280 to the left hand end of the shuttle valve 174 is provided with a safety trip valve 338. The valve 338 is mounted in the control housing and is provided with an operating arm carrying a roller 340 which is arranged to be engaged by a stationary cam piece 342. The valve 338 is normally closed, and the cam piece 342 is disposed in the path of the roller 340 to effect opening of the valve at a point in the cycle immediately adjacent the point where the filling operation is normally completed. Opening of the valve 338 will effect bleeding of the left hand side of the shuttle valve to cause closing of the control valve 104. If the shuttle valve 174 has already been automatically actuated in response to the height of the liquid no further function is performed by opening the safety valve 338. However, in the event that the liquid control valve 104 has not been closed at this time, opening of the safety valve will efiect positive operation of the shuttle valve to effect such closing. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the stationary cam piece 342 is mounted at one end of a bar 343 adjustably carried by a block 344 which in turn is adjustably mounted on an outboard bracket 346 clamped to the upper end of a post 348. The lower end of the post is secured in a bracket 350 attached to the base 38 of the machine.

While the continuous flow of low pressure air being blown out of the outlet 129 of the air nozzle 118 is sufficient to maintain the nozzle clear of most liquids being run, it was found in practice that some liquids have a tendency to adhere to and accumulate on the outlet end of the nozzle, despite such low pressure air flow, to an extent such as to render the control mechanism inoperative.

In accordance with the present invention provision is made for periodically directing a surge of high pressure air into the low pressure air line through the pipe T 500 disposed in the line intermediate the pipe T and the nozzle 118 to maintain the latter clear at all times. As herein illustrated, the clearing operation is preferably performed after each filling operation at a point in the rotary travel of the bottles where the elevator platforms 12 have started their downward movement preparatory to discharge of the filled bottles so that when a surge of high pressure air is directed through the nozzle 118 it will not disturb the liquid in the filled bottle. This position or point of travel coincides substantially with the point at the station preceding the point at which the safety valve 338 is opened by the stationary cam piece 342 to release high pressure air from the left hand side of the shuttle valve 174 to assure closing of the liquid control valve 104 before removal of the bottles from operative filling position with the filling head in the event that the valve 104 has not been previously closed by the liquid reaching its filling height. Upon closing of the liquid control valve the air nozzle 118 is disposed in its upwardly retracted position. Prior to the present invention, when the safety valve 338 was opened, the high pressure air was released to the atmosphere directly from the valve 338 to effect shifting of the shuttle valve 174. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention the safety valve 338 is provided with an outlet connected by the pipe 502 which leads to the pipe T 500 of a preceding filling unit. Thus, in operation, when the safety valve 338 of one filling unit is tripped by the cam 342 the high pressure air released by the safety valve is directed through the pipe T 500 of a preceding unit and through the connecting pipe 504, passageway 122 in the valve stem 102, and through the air nozzle 118 to escape to the atmosphere. By this expedient the liquid control valve 104 of one filling unit is positively closed, if it had not been previously closed and, simultaneously therewith, the high pressure air released by the valve 338 is caused to surge through the air nozzle 118 of a preceding filling unit to clear the nozzle of any accumulation of liquid in the nozzle. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the bottle has been lowered away from the preceding filling unit by the elevator platform 12 so that when the air is blown through the nozzle 118 the liquid in the bottle is spaced a sufiicient distance away from the end of the air nozzle so that the surge of air through the nozzle will not disturb or displace the liquid in the bottle. As illustrated in FIG. 2, adjacent filling units are all connected by the pipes 502 in a similar manner so that the valve 338 of one unit is connected to the low pressure air line of a preceding unit in the manner described.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, in order to prevent the high pressure .air passing through the pipe T 500 from backing up through the low pressure line 124 and into the diaphragm unit 178, the pipe T is provided with an aspirator fitting indicated generally at 506 which includes a relatively small central tube 508 through which the high pressure air must pass. The tube 508 is supported in a sleeve 510 provided in the end of the pipe 502 connected to the leg 503 of the pipe T. The central tube 508 passes beyond the low pressure inlet leg 505 of the T and terminates Within the leg 507 thereof. This structure provides an aspirator effect so that a surge of high pressure air passing through the T will tend to draw air out of the low pressure pipe 124 rather than build up a pressure therein, thus preventing inadvertent operation of the diaphragm valve 178 at such time.

From the above description it will be seen that the present invention provides a novel structure in a container filling machine for clearing the low pressure air nozzle of the filling head after each filling operation whereby to remove any accumulation of the liquid prod uct thereon and whereby to maintain the control means in efficient operating condition.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been herein illustrated and described, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other forms within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. In a container filling machine, in combination, a filling head having a liquid control valve, a low pressure air conductor, an air nozzle connected to said air conductor and having an outlet blocked by the liquid when it reaches a predetermined height in the container to effect a back pressure in said nozzle, control means responsive to said back pressure for closing said liquid control valve, a high pressure air conductor also connected to said nozzle, means for periodically directing air at high pressure through said nozzle to clear the same, and means for preventing said high pressure air from backing up into said low pressure conductor during the clearing operation.

2. In a container filling machine, in combination, a filling head having a liquid supply inlet and a nozzle outlet, a liquid control valve in said filling head, means for conducting low pressure air into the container arranged to sense the height of the liquid when it reaches a predetermined level such as to cut off the flow of air into the container and to create a back pressure in said air con ducting means, control means responsive to said back pressure for operating the valve to discontinue the flow of liquid into the container, means connected to said air conducting means for directing a surge of high pressure air through said low pressure air conducting means after each filling operation, and means for preventing the high pressure air from backing up into said low pressure air conducting means during the surging operation.

3. The combination in a container filling machine of a filling head having a liquid control valve, the improvement comprising an air line connected to a source of air at low pressure, a low pressure air nozzle connected to said low pressure air line for directing air into the container and having an outlet disposed at a predetermined level in the container, control means for closing said valve to discontinue the filling operation responsive to the back pressure created in said low pressure air nozzle when the liquid reaches said predetermined level to block the escape of air from the outlet, an air line connected to a source of air at high pressure also connected to said nozzle, means for periodically directing a surge of air at high pressure through said low pressure air nozzle to clear the same after each filling operation, and means in said high pressure air conducting line arranged to prevent the high pressure air from backing up into said low pressure air line.

4. In a container filling machine, in combination, a filling head having a liquid control valve, an air nozzle for conducting air at low pressure from a low pressure air line into the container and having an outlet blocked by the liquid when it reaches a predetermined height in the container to create a back pressure in the nozzle, pneumatically operated control means responsive to said back pressure for closing said liquid control valve, said pneumatically operated control means including an air circuit having a safety trip valve, a stationary cam for opening said trip valve to release high pressure air from said circuit and to assure closing of said liquid control valve in the event that the liquid had not reached said outlet within a predetermined time, a connection between said trip valve and said low pressure air line for directing the high pressure air released by said trip valve through said low pressure air nozzle to clear the same, and means cooperating with said connection having provision for preventing the high pressure air from backing up into said low pressure air line.

5. The combination as defined in claim 4 wherein a series of filling heads are provided for filling successive containers, the trip valve of each filling head being connected to the low pressure air line of its preceding filling head.

6. The combination as defined in claim 4 wherein the means cooperating with said connection between the trip valve and the low pressure air line includes an aspirator to prevent said high pressure air from backing up into said low pressure air line.

7. The combination as defined in claim 4 wherein the connection between the trip valve and the low pressure air nozzle includes a pipe T connected to said low pressure air line, and wherein the means cooperating with said connection comprises an aspirator in said pipe T for directing the high pressure air beyond the inlet of said low pressure air line to prevent said high pressure air from backing up into said low pressure air line.

8. In a rotary container filling machine, in combination, a plurality of filling heads movable in a circular path, a plurality of container elevating members arranged to elevate successive containers into operative filling relation to the filling heads, each filling head having a liquid control valve, an air line connected to a source of air at low pressure, an air nozzle connected to said low pressure air line, said air nozzle extending through said liquid control valve and terminating in an outlet at a predetermined level within the container for continuously conducting air at low pressure into the container during the filling operation, said outlet being blocked by the liquid when it reaches said predetermined level to create a back pressure in the air conducting means, pneumatically opated control means responsive to said back pressure for operating said valve to discontinue the flow of liquid into the container, said control means including a high pressure air circuit having a safety trip valve and a stationary cam cooperating with said trip valve to assure closing of the liquid control valve in the event that the liquid has not reached said outlet within a predetermined time prior to lowering the container out of operative filling relation, said trip valve being adapted to release air at high pressure when it engages said cam, a connecting line between said trip valve and the low pressure air line of a preceding filling head where the container has been lowered from operative filling relation to the filling head for conducting said high pressure air through said low pressure air nozzle to clear the same after each filling operation, and an aspirator in said high pressure air conducting line arranged to conduct the high pressure air beyond the connection to the low pressure air line to prevent said high pressure air from backing up into said low pressure air line.

FOREIGN PATENTS 395,667 7/33 Great Britain.

LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN A CONTAINER FILLING MACHINE, IN COMBINATION, A FILLING HEAD HAVING A LIQUID CONTROL VALVE, A LOW PRESSURE AIR CONDUCTOR, AN AIR NOZZLE CONNECTED TO SAID AIR CONDUCTOR AND HAVING AN OUTLET BLOCKED BY THE LIQUID WHEN IT REACHES A PREDETERMINED HEIGHT IN THE CONTAINER TO EFFECT A BACK PRESSURE IN SAID NOZZLE, CONTROL MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SAID BACK PRESSURE FOR CLOSING SAID LIQUID CONTROL VALVE, A HIGH PRESSURE AIR CONDUCTOR ALSO CONNECTED TO SAID NOZZLE, MEANS FOR PERIODICALLY DIRECTING AIR AT HIGH PRESSURE THROUGH SAID NOZZLE TO CLEAR THE SAME, AND MEANS FOR PREVENTING SAID HIGH PRESSURE AIR FROM BACKING UP INTO SAID LOW PRESSURE CONDUCTOR DURING THE CLEARING OPERATION. 